Content Marketing Strategies for Social Media: Trends vs. Hype

These days, it’s tough to talk about content marketing without talking about social media. As the Content Marketing Institute/MarketingProfs 2013 B2B Content Marketing Benchmarks, Budgets and Trends research shows, marketers are relying heavily on social media to distribute their content, and there are increases year-over-year. However, is this a good thing? And are marketers doing this correctly?

As the consultants mentioned, there are two big challenges with social media and content marketing strategies.

1. Marketers are using channels because they can, not because they make sense

I’m finding that the majority of clients are focusing on where; that’s all they care about. They want to know where they need to be; and I say, ‘STOP! We don’t know where you should be. Let’s figure out who, and what. Who do we want to talk to, and what do we want to say? Once we figure that out, then we know where they are.’ So maybe it will work, B2B for Facebook, or maybe it won’t; I think the increase of Facebook is just because it’s easy.” – Michael Weiss

So how do you know which channels make sense for you? The conversation reveals a few ideas:

Start with your buyer personas. Really understand who is using your content and how they want to get info from you.

2. Not all channels require the same kind of content

I look at how many B2B clients that I see who automatically drive their Twitter posts to Facebook, and it’s harsh when you see it in the wrong format.” – Carla Johnson

You want your content in the right format for the social network you are using. CMI’s eBook 58 Social Media Tips for Content Marketing provides suggestions and examples for all of the social channels included in our content marketing research. Check it out!

Author: Michele Linn

Michele is the Vice President of Content at the Content Marketing Institute. She is one of those people who truly loves what she does and who she works with. You can follow her on Twitter at @michelelinn.